Q: How can we reduce smoke and emissions in our foundry and at the same time produce defect-free castings?
A: The Environmental Protection Agency sets emission standards for hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) at foundries – many of which are traced to the emissions that result from chemical binders used in mold and coremaking. Some organic HAP emissions include benzene, toluene, and xylene (BTX) as well as naphthalene.
VEINO ULTRA™ NB-LOSMK is a sand additive developed by ASK Chemicals to reduce these emissions by as much as 30% in no-bake molding applications. (See Figure 1.)
In addition to reducing emissions, VEINO ULTRA™ NB-LOSMK also reduces smoke, which contributes to an improved working environment for foundry personnel. By removing the smoke from the air, workers’ line of sight is improved substantially.
When working with most sand additives, it’s necessary to increase the amount of the binder being used in order to compensate for a decrease in tensile strength that results due to the addition of high-surface area, finer particles. VEINO ULTRA™ NB-LOSMK’s size distribution has been optimized in order to minimize the negative effects on tensile strength. (See Figure 2.)As with standard sand additives, VEINO ULTRA™ NB-LOSMK will combat veining, penetration, and surface finish defects in addition to lowering emissions and smoke. Furthermore, it has the ability to scavenge for various mold gases.
For those foundries that reclaim sand, either mechanically or thermally, sand additive build up in the reclamation system may be a concern as tensile levels for the sand will diminish over time. These worries are negated by VEINO ULTRA™ NB-LOSMK, as the particles will be drawn off in the foundry’s dust-collection system.
VEINO ULTRA™ NB-LOSMK provides a solution to smoke and emissions in the foundry, and will working conditions for operators.
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